13 hospitalised after huge robbery in Yeshwanthpur Express

In what looks like a plot straight out of a Hindi film, at least 13 passengers on a Bengaluru-bound train were robbed of their belongings when they fell unconscious after consuming biscuits that reportedly contained some intoxicants. The incident happened in the early hours of Wednesday when a few youngsters sold biscuits to passengers aboard the Yeshwantpur Express, which had started its journey from Jodhpur. Soon after consuming the biscuits, the victims began to feel drowsy before they lost consciousness.

The youngsters then allegedly stole their valuables and managed to escape. Later, their families realised that gold and other items were missing from their bags, police said. Around 4 am when the train arrived at the Gudur station in Nellore district, the passengers alerted the railway police and unconscious people were shifted to a local hospital.

Six of them seem to have serious health consequences, said an officer.

“We are trying to get the CCTV footage of the station from where they boarded the train that could show what exactly happened. Right now, there is no clarity on how many people were there, and who those people were. We are talking to eyewitnesses and railway staff to understand if they got on to the train with the intention to rob or if it was a prank and how did they flee,” a senior police officer said.

Drugging and robbing on trains isn’t uncommon and it’s difficult for agencies to keep a check on gangs boarding coaches with these drugs as they are mostly sedatives which can be acquired easily.